Dog on It: A Chet and Bernie Mystery

In this, their first adventure, Chet and Bernie investigate the disappearance of Madison, a teenage girl who may or may not have been kidnapped, but who has definitely gotten mixed up with some very unsavory characters.

The Iggy Chronicles, Volume One: A Chet and Bernie Mystery Short Story

Iggy is a dog who doesn’t get out much, so it’s big news when elderly Mr. Parsons knocks on Bernie’s door to say that Iggy has vanished. In the search for Iggy, Chet and Bernie find Mrs. Parsons unconscious on her bedroom floor, in need of urgent medical care. But it’s only when they arrive at the hospital that things get really interesting. With a jewel thief making short work of hospital patients’ valuables, it seems that Iggy is not alone in disappearing right out from under somebody’s nose. Suspects are plentiful and witnesses are few.

Tail of Vengeance: A Chet and Bernie Mystery eShort Story

Chet and Bernie - everybody's favorite human-canine detective team - are asked by a beautiful woman to find evidence that would put her cheating boyfriend in the doghouse. This is an e-original short story from New York Times best-selling author Spencer Quinn.

Santa 365

He sees you when you're sleeping. He knows when you're awake. This year, jolly old St. Nick knows Bernie has been sleeping on preparations for a special Christmas celebration with his son, Charlie. Enter Plumpy Napoleon, fresh from a short stint in prison, to save Bernie from the naughty list. Plumpy calls his latest business plan "Santa 365".

Woof

Bowser is a dog detective on the loose, paired with an 11-year-old girl, Birdie. Bowser and Birdie live on the Louisiana coast with Birdie's Grammy. When a prize stuffed marlin is stolen from Grammy's bait and tackle shop, Birdie and Bowser decide to take on the case. But what looks like a straightforward break-in soon becomes as tangled as a tourist's fishing line.

Smoky Mountain Tracks: A Raine Stockton Dog Mystery, Volume 1

As a native of the small town of Hansonville, North Carolina,and a wilderness rescue worker, Raine Stockton knows the Smoky Mountains as well as anyone could, but she gave up her Search and Rescue work after a tragic loss. Now she reluctantly returns to active duty to help find a young child who has been kidnapped and taken deep into the forest.

The Twelve Dogs of Christmas: An Andy Carpenter Mystery

Defense lawyer Andy Carpenter usually tries to avoid taking on new cases at all costs. But this time, he's happy - eager, even - to take the case that's just come his way. Andy's long-time friend Martha "Pups" Boyer takes in stray puppies that the local dog rescue center can't handle, raises them until they're old enough to adopt, and then finds good homes for them. Not everyone admires the work Pups does as much as Andy does, however.

Outfoxed: An Andy Carpenter Mystery

Defense lawyer Andy Carpenter spends as much time as he can working on his true passion - the Tara Foundation, the dog rescue organization he runs. Lately Andy has been especially involved in a county prison program where inmates help train dogs the Tara Foundation has rescued to make them more adoptable, benefiting both the dogs and the prisoners. One of the prisoners Andy has been working with is Brian Atkins, who has 18 months left on a five-year term for fraud.

In Dog We Trust

After a bad divorce and a brief prison term for computer hacking, 42-year-old Steve Levitan has returned to his home town of Stewart's Crossing and taken a part-time job as an adjunct professor of English at his alma mater, Eastern College. While walking around his gated community, he becomes friendly with his next-door neighbor, Caroline Kelly, and her golden retriever, Rochester. When Caroline is shot and killed while walking Rochester, Steve becomes the dog's temporary guardian. Together, these two unlikely sleuths work to uncover the mystery behind Caroline's death.

Paw Enforcement: K9, Book 1

Officer Luz is lucky she still has a job after tasering a male colleague where it counts the most. Sure, he had it coming - which is why the police chief is giving Megan a second chance. The catch? Her new partner can't carry a gun, can't drive a cruiser, and can't recite the Miranda Rights. Because her new partner is a big furry police dog. So that's what the chief meant when he called Megan's partner a real bitch...With Brigit out on the beat, Megan is writing up enough tickets to wallpaper the whole station.

Open and Shut

Whether dueling with new forensics or the local old boys' network, irreverent defense attorney Andy Carpenter always leaves them awed with his biting wit and winning fourth-quarter game plan. But the fun stops the day Andy's dad, Paterson, New Jersey's legendary ex-DA, drops dead in front of him at a game in Yankee Stadium.

Flash: A Dogleg Island Mystery

Aggie Malone is a dedicated young cop who has spent her entire life just looking for a place to call home. She never thought she'd find it in a quaint Florida village called Dogleg Island, where almost nothing ever happens. Deputy Ryan Grady is an easygoing playboy who carries a surf board in the trunk of his patrol car and lives in the same rambling beach cottage his grandfather built 70 years ago. He grew up on Dogleg Island and can't imagine ever living anywhere else. It's always been the most peaceful place he has ever known.

Crowned and Dangerous

Nothing is simple when you're 35th in line for the British crown, least of all marriage. But with love on their side and plans to elope, Lady Georgiana Rannoch and her beau, Darcy O'Mara, hope to bypass a few royal rules....

An Obvious Fact

In the midst of the largest motorcycle rally in the world, a young biker is run off the road and ends up in critical condition. When Sheriff Walt Longmire and his good friend, Henry Standing Bear, are called to Hulett, Wyoming - the nearest town to America's first national monument, Devils Tower - to investigate, things start getting complicated.

Murder of a Cranky Catnapper: A Scumble River Mystery, Book 19

With her morning sickness finally abated, Skye Denison-Boyd is ready to pounce on the pertinent problems she faces as Scumble River Elementary School's psychologist. After trying almost every trick in the book to aid a handful of socially awkward fourth grade boys, Skye opts for the innovative approach of pet therapy with the assistance of the local vet, a Siberian husky, and a Maine coon cat. Unfortunately, the first session only breeds disaster and draws the ire of cantankerous school board member Palmer Lynch.

Stalking Ground: A Timber Creek K-9 Mystery, Book 2

When Deputy Ken Brody's sweetheart goes missing in the mountains outside Timber Creek, Mattie Cobb and her K-9 partner Robo are called to search. But it's mid-October and a dark snow storm is brewing over the high country. And they're already too late. By the time they find her body, the storm has broken and the snow is coming down hard.

The Sound of Running Horses: Dogleg Island Mystery, Volume 2

Still recovering from the traumatic events of the past year, newlyweds Aggie Malone, police chief of Dogleg Island, and Deputy Sheriff Ryan Grady are looking forward to a casual day trip to Wild Horse Island, a nearby nature preserve, with their precocious - and uncannily perceptive - border collie, Flash. But when Flash discovers a body in a shallow grave on the island, and Aggie and Ryan learn of an attack on the park ranger, a tangled knot of conspiracy, murder and deception begins to unfold.

Publisher's Summary

The fourth entry in the irresistible New York Times best-selling mystery series featuring canine narrator Chet and his human companion Bernie, "the coolest human/pooch duo this side of Wallace and Gromit" (Kirkus Reviews).

Combining suspense and intrigue with a wonderfully humorous take on the link between man and beast, Spencer Quinn's exceptional mystery series has captured widespread praise since its New York Times best-selling debut, Dog on It. The Dog Who Knew Too Much marks the duo's triumphant return in a tale that's full of surprises.

Bernie is invited to give the keynote speech at the Great Western Private Eye Convention, but it's Chet that the bigshot P.I. in charge has secret plans for. Meanwhile Chet and Bernie are hired to find a kid who has gone missing from a wilderness camp in the high country. The boy's mother thinks the boy's father - her ex - has snatched the boy, but Chet makes a find that sends the case in a new and dangerous direction. As if that weren't enough, matters get complicated at home when a stray puppy that looks suspiciously like Chet shows up. Affairs of the heart collide with a job that's never been tougher, requiring our two intrepid sleuths to depend on each other as never before. The Dog Who Knew Too Much is classic Spencer Quinn, offering page-turning entertainment that's not just for dog-lovers.

STORY (humorous mystery) - This was my first venture into the detective world of Chet and Bernie. In this book they're hired to find a boy who disappeared from wilderness camp. The mystery and investigation are good, but what makes this book refreshing is that it's told from Chet's point of view...and Chet is a dog. Hiking adventures and crooked small-town police are woven into the story, but there is lots of what I call Chet's "doggy digressions" in between. He will be talking about what's happening, and then he will go off on a tangent about how he loves bacon or how proud he is of his master, Bernie. Sometimes he will lose his train of thought completely.

There's LOTS AND LOTS of stuff kind of like this: We finally made it to Jackrabbit Junction. I don't know why they call it that because I don't smell any jackrabbits. I chased a rabbit once and it was lots of fun. That was in the case where we were looking for Slippery Sam. He's wearing an orange suit now somewhere upstate. Anyway, Jackrabbit Junction is a small town with...(and then gets back on track with the story). It's cute and refreshing for a while, but I soon tired of the novelty and just wanted to hear how the mystery was wrapped up. I probably won't listen to any more books in this series.

PERFORMANCE - Nice job! He had a good rhythm which complemented how a dog might be thinking and trying to speak, but it didn't detract from the story he was telling.

OVERALL - I'd recommend this for children and adults both EXCEPT for about six or seven F-bombs which pop up sporadically. You must be in the mood for a light mystery and lots of slightly humorous dog thoughts. The story stands alone.

Light, funny and well written. The tale (no pun intended) is written from the dog's point of view. Different from most books written by the pet however, this dog actually behaves like a dog, not like a furry human. Jim Frangione is perfect as Chet. I'm looking forward to the next one.

Another brilliant book written by Spencer Quinn. After imagining the meeting between Chet and Iggy, the scene in which they did meet, was certainly far better than anything I had ever thought up! Would love to read more about these two meeting! Jim Frangione is the best voice for Chet and I always enjoy his reading of the books. I highly reccomend this book to anyone and can hardly wait for the next book!

I could review this one in depth but it really is the same old story. Chet and Bernie take on a case of a missing kid for a mother. The story of how the kid came to be missing is full of holes; once again it seems that the divorced father of a missing has gotten involved with the wrong people and now owes them money. The bad guys take the child to prove a point and make sure that Papasan cooperates with them. At some point Bernie gets arrested again; Chet gets captured again. Stop me if you've heard this please. In the end Bernie saves the kid and brings him back and apprehends the bad guys. Okay this is obviously the series, and the author isn't planning on stepping outside the comfort zone that they've established so the fans of this series will have to settle for a dog that relates a good story. This one is a solid four and a good time listening experience.

This is a case where the reviews get better with each book in the series. Either you liked the premise of the dog as a narrator in which case, you moved onto the next book or you did not and passed on the subsequent books. Assuming you did these in sequence, by the time you got to book four you are left only with fans. I am waiting for book five. I delight in the relationship of Bernie and Chet as does the dog who is lying by my side on the couch.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

The book is from the point of view of Chet, a dog. Listening to it, while novel at first, got a little tiring towards the end. The story was your typical private investigator story...nothing all that special.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Same as the story, it is your usual formulaic "private investigator" story just from the perspective of the PIs dog. Chet is your typical dog, distracted, adoring, and quite dim.

What about Jim Frangione’s performance did you like?

He made a very believable Chet.

Could you see The Dog Who Knew Too Much being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

This story reminds me of the PI dramas of the 70s or 80s. I could see this as a humorous spin-off of the Rockford Files or something similar (Filmed in Technicolor!)

Even though it is not the first book in the series it is the first I read... maybe it was on sale .... but I will return to book one and can't wait. If you love dogs, have a dog or are a dog (since the books narrator is a dog, I assume some reader might be too) you will love the mind of a dog's view of his master. He can do no wrong. "Did I tell you what great eyebrows he has?" His master poor sense of smell and not so keen eyesight are puzzling, but endearing to the canine author.

The mystery is not the best, not bad, but not the best. You won't care.

If you have not discovered the Chet and Bernie Mystery series, you may want to give one of them a try. The novels would be considered light mysteries, and they are written from the perspective of Chet, the dog half of the Little Detective Agency (Bernie being the human half!).

I always find these books to be cute and different, and good for several hours of entertainment. The narrator has been the same for all of the books so far, and he IS Chet in our minds—and absolutely perfect for this series.

If you’re not sure about committing to a series, another good point for this one is I feel the books can be enjoyed by themselves or even out of order. I did experience a sound quality issue in the last book, but am happy to report that this one is fine.

It was a pleasure spending time with Chet and Bernie again—I look forward to more adventures in the future!!